A REEXAMINATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SHYNESS, ATTRIBUTIONAL STYLE, AND DEPRESSION

Alfano, Joiner, and Perry (1994) used analysis of variance and analysi s of covariance in a sample of college students to demonstrate that at tributional style mediates between shyness and depression, as opposed to depression mediating between shyness and attributional style. They suggested, however, the hypothetical possibility of a third model, in which negative attributional style, rather than shyness, is the indepe ndent variable, and shyness serves as a mediator between attributional style and depression. In the current study, this alternative model wa s tested by using LISREL to reanalyze the Alfano et al. data. Results showed that this third model, with shyness as the mediating variable, fit the model quite poorly, in contrast to the preferred model of Alfa no et al., which fit quite well. However, variants of this model, in w hich shyness functionally precedes both attributional style and depres sion, fit the data better. The substantive implications of this model for counseling practice and the methodological cautions about interpre ting cross-sectional data for temporal sequences are discussed.